Fairytale Rewrites
by ArachCobra
Summary: Written exclusively by my co-author, Givenea. It started with a school project, but now she has decided to give other fairytales a look.
1. Cinderella

Cinderella

"Keep being a good girl, and God will bestow his grace upon you."

Those were the last words my Mama spoke to me. I was six at the time and she had been sick for a while when my governess brought me to her room. Two days later, Mama was no more.

I tried to be good. I really did.

...

In the following months, everybody tried to move on, to pick up the pieces and keep our home running. Everyone, from Jacque the steward, to the lowest of the servants. Everyone except Papa, as the days, not to speak of months, passed, he became more and more sad, more and more distant from everything he had once held so dear. And finally one day, he left.

I didn't understand it. I neither could nor would understand the pain my father felt, and what it did to him. What I did understand was that his departure marked the end of those six gloomy months that had followed Mama's death, and the beginning of a glorious time of freedom and joy.

...

The following two and a half year will always stand as some of the happiest in my memory. While I had to continue studying with my governess, I was also allowed to play with the other children who resided on the grounds. We swam in the lake, climbed the trees and had epic snowball battles in the gardens that surrounded the house, and when nighttime came, we would gather around the big oak wood table in the kitchen and my governess would tell old legends and fairy stories that left us in wide-eyed wonder.

Nevertheless, after thirty wonderful months, he returned. My father was back, and with him, he brought a new wife and two new daughters.

Mother was… strict… That is really the best way to say it.

She had barely entered the house, before she started to change everything. The food was not good enough, so we had to get a new cook. She had the house completely redecorated with new carpets and furniture from top to bottom. The gardens never became the same again. I swear she drew poor Jacque almost completely insane with her many demands for changes of staff and routine.

As for me: Well, in the beginning it was not too unbearable. Mother mostly ignored me. While I was no longer allowed to hang around in the kitchen, I could still find time to see my friends. For a while I didn't realize the changes she made, but they were most definitely there. The quality and quantity of my clothes became poorer and poorer, and slowly she started excluding me more and more from my father's company. Moreover, she made me do various chores around the house. Chores that in no way should be handed to a daughter of the house and which certainly wasn't something her own daughters should do.

It was a slow process, so for the first two years… I was happy.

I was content with having my father back and having two new sisters to share the long hours in the schoolroom with.

Giselle and Charlotte, as my sisters are called, were raised strictly and in a rather narrow minded fashion. They were taught not to think of their own happiness in any matter, but rather on how their choices would reflect on their family. This mentality showed in all they did, from their luxurious and beautiful clothes, to the graceful and majestic yet timid way they carried themselves. For Giselle this was easy. She was by nature the true lady her mother was trying to raise, and Charlotte and me as younger sisters would try to mimic her in every small movement. It wasn't an easy task, but I was not expected to master the art of ladyship, so I got away with a lot of small mistakes that would have made Mother swing the belt over Charlotte. Poor Charlotte, where Giselle was truly calm and graceful, Charlotte was a bundle of energy and seemed to have two left feet. It surely didn't help that her voice seemed to get stuck in a rather high octave whenever she spoke or laughed loudly, something she had a habit of and that Mother never took kindly to.

But as I said, they are my sisters, and, for the first two years, we managed to share our days despite the different treatments we got from Mother, and was it ever different. Giselle and Charlotte were always well dressed and wore five different dresses every day. They would wear one, from when they got up in the morning and till it was time for lunch, one from after lunch to the afternoon tea was served in the orangery, then another change for a dress they would wear until just before dinner and then one to wear at the dinner table and until it was time to go to sleep, and finally they had several nightgowns to chose from when they went to bed. Besides that, they each had different dresses to ride in, a number of parasols, shoes and hats. A sudden extra dress change could suddenly be necessary if father brought guests home or if there was a party to attend. As for me, I had one dress per day, one nice dress that I wore to church every Sunday and in the afternoons if Father brought a guest home. I also had an evening gown that, despite being a hand me down from Giselle, was good enough to wear when we had guests over in the evening.

...

One of the first chores Mother gave me was to wake my sisters up in the morning, bring them their breakfast and help them get dressed. It was such a morning that Giselle very quietly admitted to me that she was a little jealous of the freedom I experienced. Looking back, I can see what she meant. My sisters had to be ladies twenty-four hours a day; they weren't ever allowed to forget their place or their rank in society. I was still allowed to 'run along and play with my friends', scrape my knees and get dirty. I only realized why I was not ordered to stay away from the servants' children, when Mother collected me from the schoolroom and brought me to the kitchen. It was because she thought I belonged among them.

From that day on I was no longer allowed to be at the dinner table. I ate in the schoolroom with my sisters or in the kitchen with the staff. My evening dress was taken away and I only wore my good dress to church, where Mother reluctantly had to let me sit with the family.

...

And so, my life changed again. Every morning I was up at the crack of dawn or before, depending on the season, to help around the kitchen to get plates ready for my family. Then eight hours of classes followed and then I was back in the kitchens until dinner, after which I was free to play two or three hours until I went to bed around nine o'clock.

Day after day, year after year.

There were few bright spots, but they were there and they meant the world. I can only ever be thankful to Father for insisting on continuing my education, Mother wanted to drop it, as the teachers she hired wanted more payment to teach three girls instead of two. But father stood his ground and insisted that I got my education even if it only was to ensure me a career as governess later on. This is the only time I've ever heard him raise his voice against Mother. At any other time it was his faithful steward Jacque who would watch over me and make sure I was never kept working outside of my schedule and he got me a bed in the room behind the big oven in the kitchen, so that I never had to freeze at night. Sometimes he also managed to get me pieces of the sweet desserts served to my family in the dining room. It was first recently I learned that the treats, I shared so secretly with my roommates, all came from Giselle's plate, sneaking them to me were one of the many ways I felt her support through the years. Another came when Charlotte started calling me by that dreaded nickname which soon would be the only name I had to my family.

...

It started on a bright day in the middle of April. Winter was over and a good spring cleaning was in order. I was helping cleaning out the chimney, when I was suddenly called up to help Mother with a flower arrangement. On my way up I passed Giselle and Charlotte. I heard Charlotte's voice loud, clear and high-pitched calling out from behind me: "Look at how dirty you are Daniela. You look like a… a… a Cinderella, yes that's it. Daniela is Cinderella…" I rolled my eyes and hurried into the living room, it was typical of Charlotte. Mother greeted me with a simple: "Hand me those roses… Cinderella."

Soon everybody used the name, and I accepted it, because… what else could I do? But when I helped my sisters change dresses, when we were alone in their room, Giselle would never address me as anything else than Daniela and, eager to be like her sister, Charlotte soon dropped the nickname too, at least in private.

...

And so we come to the part of my story that everybody seems to focus on, the ball. Gossip had been going around for a while, before the king finally confirmed the rumors by sending out invitations to all of the big houses, inviting all unmarried daughters to the castle so he could choose a bride among them. Mother was of course ecstatic. She had been keeping from giving a clear answer to any of Giselle's admirers in the hope that something really good would show. And now the chance seemed to be here. For Giselle, who at eighteen, was at just the right age to catch a husband, and for Charlotte who despite only being fifteen years old was old enough to catch the eyes of young men.

Giselle and Charlotte themselves mostly seemed excited about the prospect of going to a ball at the castle. Giselle told us about it, while I helped them get dressed. She had been there a few weeks earlier when she made her debut in the social life. It had been a beautiful ball she told us. Entranced by her story, I accidentally exclaimed: "That sounds wonderful, Giselle. I wish I could go with you and see it all." Charlotte, being Charlotte, immediately followed my wish up by telling the maid, who was handing me different pins and ribbons to style her hair: "Go ask Mama if Daniela can come with us to the ball!" The maid was out before I could even try to stop her, ten minutes later I was called to mother's room.

When I entered her room, she sent me a very displeased look and then slowly said: "So. I understand you want to go to the ball." Without even waiting for an answer, she told me that it was out of the question, that I didn't have an appropriate dress and that I would only embarrass them all and ruin my sisters' chance of impressing the king.

And so she sent me down to my room behind the kitchen, where I found that all of my roommates very excited and… giggling, they led me to the big washing hall were we washed our clothing and the staff took their baths. They told me to hurry and then handed me over to the four maids whom were usually in charge of helping Mother with her baths. They worked quickly and soon I was bathed, dried and rubbed in sweet scented oil that I recognized as Charlotte's favorite. Someone knocked on the door and one of them whispered in my ear: "They're out of the house, hurry." Then they led me up stairs, where they had found a dress hidden away and forgotten in the back of Giselle's wardrobe, as well as a pair of slippers, decorated with pearl embroidery, from Charlotte's room. It all fit well, and as soon as they could put my hair up, I was led downstairs to the hall. Jacque waited for me. He offered me his arm and smiled kindly down at me as we walked out the door. "I've hired a cab, Little Mademoiselle," Jacque told me "It'll bring you to the castle and bring you back home at midnight. Remember, you must be on time so your mother doesn't find out." With those words, he helped me into the waiting cab and turned to the driver: "When you return, come around to the back and get the rest of the payment." The driver nodded and we drove off.

...

The ball was amazing. The ballroom was huge and tastefully decorated. Nobody seemed to notice me at first, just another pretty face in the crowd, but then a man asked me to dance. He was a tall, handsome man in his mid-twenties. As we danced, he started talking casually to me: "Are you enjoying this little gathering?" I smiled and bowed my head in a nod: "Yes, very much so. Though at first I was afraid I would end up a wallflower." He chuckled: "I would think myself a terrible host, if I allowed that to happen to such a beautiful woman." I blinked. I hadn't realized whom I was dancing with, but I had to compose myself before he realized my befuddlement, so I just said the first thing that came to my mind: "I don't think Your Majesty would be capable of such indiscretion." Once again he laughed and we danced together for as many dances as we could afford without seeming tactless.

Feeling almost lightheaded from bliss, I went over to the wall, making sure to stand by a window so I could see the watch on the clock tower. I had not been standing there for long, when I heard a way too familiar voice from behind me: "Excuse me, Mademoiselle, but you seem to be wearing my dress." I whirled around to face my older sister, whom was smiling pleasantly to me. She spoke quietly to make sure no one would hear her: "You should have told me of this, Daniela. I wouldn't have told Mama, and I could have helped." I just stared at her and apparently, she took my silence as approval to continue: "I know just the dresses for you to wear. You know that light-blue one I wore at Gaston LeFou's gala last summer? And for the third installment of this ball you should wear something really nice, I have just the one. It's gorgeous and will go really well with those golden satin slippers of Charlotte's, you know, the ones with the crystal butterfly decorations." She gently took my hand. "I better go now, Mama would be very cross if she found us together." And then she dashed off leaving me rather taken aback by her sudden appearance.

I glanced out the window and saw that it was almost midnight. I hurried out of the ballroom, not sensing anything but the need to reach my cab and get home in time. I didn't even notice the king calling out behind me, and I was well on my way home before I saw him following the cab. I got the driver's attention and told him to let me off by a small door in the garden wall, and then I hid in the dovecot 'till the king and his men rode of. When I entered the house, Jacque had made sure that a few maids were ready to help me back in my old clothes.

...

Next morning Giselle told me that Father had chopped open the dovecot with an axe and my roommates swore they had heard him muttering something about me as he went to get the axe. For the first time in my life I was scared, no terrified, of my quiet and distant father. In their own chambers, Charlotte let me know that she was not happy with being kept in the dark, but with a bit of persuasion she was in on the plan. The dress Giselle had chosen for me was hanging ready in the wardrobe, and after a quick transformation, I was off to the ball.

...

Once again the king devoted most of the evening to me. I spent a bit of time with my sisters. Just having fun with them was something I had not been able to do for years and I suddenly realized how much I missed them. At midnight I hurried out to my cab. When the king tried to follow me, I escaped him by hiding in an old pear tree in the garden. Just as I entered the kitchen, after changing back to my own clothes, I heard the pear tree hit the ground. Next morning, I quietly left my parents' breakfast on their nightstand and slipped out of their chambers. I'd rather face Mother's wrath later, than face my father.

...

But I still went for the third installment and it went even better, than the former two, except that I lost my shoe on my way to catch my cap.

The next morning the king arrived at our doorstep, looking for the girl he had met at the ball. Mother hoped to make him marry one of my sisters, as the only clues he had to go by was that the girl always disappeared in our garden and a small slipper she had lost on her way out.

...

I was asked to bring refreshments for the guests. As I entered the room, Giselle had already tried the shoe and realized it did not fit, as her foot was too broad over the toes. I saw mother hand Giselle a knife: "Cut your toe off. When you are queen, you won't need to walk." After that, everything happened really fast. Giselle took a step backwards, away from mother and yelled at the top of her lungs: "NO! I WILL _NOT_ CUT MY TOE OF JUST TO FIT A SHOE!" Everybody in the room gasped, because this was not behavior anyone would expect from my sweet and polite sister. Giselle straightened her back and corrected a fold in her dress, she eyed me with a smile and then turned to address Father: "I think Daniela should try the shoe now, after all she is the middle child." Now the king broke in and asked my father: "Middle child? Didn't you say you had only two daughters?"

My father could not have looked more embarrassed than he did when he answered the king: "My first wife had a daughter, whom we call Cinderella, but it can't be her…" My world fell apart in that moment. 'My first wife had a daughter.' I didn't hear the king order my father to bring me out, it was Giselle, who with a gentle hand on my back pushed me to step forward, take the shoe and put it on. Somewhere behind me, my father was trying to explain my state of dress, while Mother shrieked that I had not been at the ball. This prompted Charlotte to exclaim: "And why shouldn't Cinda… I mean Daniela go to the ball? She is our sister… even if she is kind of weird…" she trailed off, "What with working with servants and all…" I barely heard Mother shush Charlotte as I stood there, staring at the beautiful slipper, that was sticking out under my work dress. 'My first wife had a daughter'. Father didn't see me as his child at all. Helplessly I looked up at the king; he smiled gently down at me and drew me into a warm embrace. "Don't worry, Daniela. I'll take care of you." His voice became harsh and cold when he addressed my father: "Your daughters will accompany their sister to my court! _You and your wife_ will be allowed to remain free. Live your lifeas you please, as long as you never come near my family again!" Then he and his men led me and my sisters out of the house and into our new lives.

...

My husband has been very gracious to me, and arranged very favorable marriages, with good men for my sisters. Jacque left my father's service shortly after my wedding, as did most of our old staff. Losing her daughters drove Mother almost insane, she had poured her life into securing their future and now that that was out of her hands, she tried to make up for it by completely taking over the household and micromanaging every detail. As a result, she became almost impossible to work for. We sisters tried to find new employment for the staff, and managed mostly to do so. Giselle found an open spot as a steward in one of her husband's households, which she offered Jacque. We often spend our summers at that chateau and Jacque remains, as always, a loyal confidant for all three of us sisters.


	2. Snow White

Little Snow White

Few remember Queen Alba. Few remember this loving and wise woman, who revolutionized her country's mining industry and secured so many trade deals. She worked so hard for her kingdom's wellbeing, and cared so deeply for her people. Yet, few remember her. Because people do not want to remember her as a kindhearted, smart woman, who created stability for her country's merchants and workers. They do not wish to recall how she was a just ruler or how she always seemed to have a smile and a word of comfort for those who needed it.

People have chosen not to remember how she was as a queen, for it is the princess that intrigues them.

This is the tale of a child wished into existence by a dying woman, one cold winter day. A woman, who should only live long enough to birth and name her dream-child. She named the little girl for her colors. She was as her mother had wished her: white as snow, black as ivory and red as blood.

So gather around, my friends, and hear the tale yet again. The tale of Little Snow White.

...

The king didn't wait long after his queen's death. As soon as the traditional grieving period ended, he presented his new bride to his people. The young queen was beautiful. This was indisputable. She had a pleasing form, a beautiful face and an inherent grace about her. She also had impeccable taste when it came to clothes, makeup and even decorating. Thus she always managed to present herself at her finest and outshine any other young lady who happened to be in her presence. She knew this well. Raised in a society where a woman's value was determined only by the status of her husband and her abilities as a socialite, the young queen saw her beauty as the measure of her worth. She was confirmed in this belief every time she saw the pride in her husband's eyes as he offered her his arm when they entered a ballroom, a hunting party or when he glanced at her next to him when they held court. He was proud to have her next to him, to show her off as his wife. All because of her looks. Her looks also secured her the attention of many a visiting nobleman, the jealousy of their wives and the affection and compliments of the gaggle of young admirers that always seemed to gather around her. Yes, her beauty made her someone to behold, someone to honor.

The queen loved receiving compliments. She loved this more than anything else. Sometimes, when she thought too long had passed since she had last been complimented, she would turn to one of the many mirrors that decorated the castle and exclaim, "Mirror, mirror on the wall. Who is the fairest of them all?" and someone would immediately rush to her side to reassure her, "You are."

With all of these people competing for her interest, the queen barely noticed she had a stepchild. This ignorance was helped on the way, by the fact that the girl lived in a summer castle two thirds of the year. The king arranged it this way, so that she could learn to know the young prince of the neighboring kingdom, whom she was engaged to. It also meant that she was out of the way most of the time, and the king could devote his time to more adult pleasures.

This is not to say that the little girl was neglected. There was always a nanny, ready to take the child to school and otherwise keep her occupied. She rode horses, played chess and held tea parties with her handmaidens. She was an all-around happy little girl, and very pretty, as those things go.

But it was exactly her beauty that brought the queen's wrath down upon her. Because as time passed, people started to tire of the queen's antics. A new tone started to surface. Not to her face of course, but it was there. Hidden beneath polite smiles and courteous gestures, the resentment towards the vain queen grew. She started to hear hateful comments muttered in the background, whenever she called for a compliment. Someone would still rush up to assure her, "You are." But she would often hear someone else mutter such things as, "Just you wait." "Yeah, enjoy it while you can." "Your time will come, soon enough."

At the same time, Snow White grew only more beloved by her caretakers, and they would often talk loudly of her to other servants in the castle. Thus, the queen heard them in their gossip, "…our little Snow White, she's growing so fast…" "She is such a pretty little thing…" "…and she becomes even prettier by the day…" All of this stirred in the queen's head, until all she heard was, "Snow White will outshine you soon enough." The queen suddenly saw her stepdaughter in a new light.

She saw a rival.

Snow White was only six years old, and in no way a threat to her stepmother's social status. But the queen could no longer see that. She did not see the little girl. She only saw the budding young woman that Snow White would one day become. The woman who would take the higher social circles by storm, and leave her, the queen, unnoticed and unappreciated. This jealousy built in her for almost a year, until rage and fear drove her to do something truly desperate. She had to do it, to preserve her status, _her honor_, _**her worth**_**.**

She called forth one of her huntsmen, an old man who had been in her service for years, and gave him a gruesome order, "Take my stepdaughter into the woods, and kill her."

The woodsman collected the little girl and took her deep into the forest. But as he watched her pick flowers, which she would ever so often return with to show him, he looked into her big, innocent, trustful eyes, and he could not bring himself to strike. He fell to his knees, and held the little girl close and begged her for forgiveness and told her the truth of the queen and her plan. He saw her expression go from happiness and trust to confusion and finally to complete disbelief and horror. So he said the only thing he felt he could say. "Run away, little Snow White. Run so that she'll never find you."

And Snow White ran.

She ran all day. She didn't dare to stop, even as low hanging branches tore at her as she stumbled through the undergrowth of the forest. She kept running.

...

She ran all day, and then, when the sun was barely visible above the tall pine trees, she stumbled into a glade. In this glade, there was a house. It had two floors, was built of boulders and had a roof of wooden planks. At the left end, a steady stream turned a watermill. Snow White stood up and wiped the tears off her face, then she slowly and unsteadily made her way to the front door. She knocked on the door, but no one answered. She kept calling out but no one was there. Soon she was banging her little hands against the wood as hard as she could and screaming loudly for help. And the door gave a bit. It wasn't locked at all, just heavy. The little girl placed both hands against the door and pushed as hard as she could, and the door quietly opened. Inside she could see that most of the lower floor had been utilized as a combined kitchen and dining area. Then her eyes fell on a set of stairs leading up to the second floor. She hurried up the stairs, where she found the combined sleeping and living area. Big alcoves were built into the walls. One end of the room was completely dominated by a massive oak table, where maps and other papers were spread out. At the other end of the room, there was a fireplace, which obviously connected to the big oven in the kitchen downstairs. Around the fireplace was several comfortable chairs. Snow White curled up in one and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

Now the house was not completely deserted, as our young heroine had thought it. It belonged to seven miners, who worked in a nearby copper mine. They became quite alarmed when they came home and found the front door wide open. Expecting a burglar, they hurried through the dining area, where a chair had been knocked over, and up the stairs. And there they found her. Her dark hair was tangled and full of leaves, her dress was torn and dirty and several cuts and bruises marred the dirty skin on her hands, neck and face. She was truly a pitiful sight to behold. And yet, under the dirt, blood and snot on her face, in spite of the tear streaks on her cheeks, she looked so truly peaceful that the dwarves did not wish to wake her up. Quietly they left her there and went downstairs for supper. Afterwards, one of them, the unofficial leader, went upstairs to get the girl and get her washed up. After a quick bath he brought the girl back in to the kitchen. That's how little Snow White started her new life, by a big oak table, eating leftovers and wearing some extra clothes belonging to one of the seven men that surrounded her.

Seven men who weren't much bigger than she was, but who were nonetheless her new fathers.

The dwarves still went to work every day. For the first few months or so, they would leave Snow White in the house with strict orders to stay inside and not let anyone in. Snow White was happy enough with this. She busied herself watching the waterwheel and trying her hands at housework… to varying degrees of success. The dwarves did their best to teach the little girl what she had to know. As soon as they returned home, she would be with them in everything they did. She helped in the garden behind the house, and the dwarves took turns having her with them in the kitchen, teaching her simple recipes to keep their big household fed. Every Saturday they scrubbed the house from top to bottom. Moreover, every night before they went to bed, they'd gather around the table upstairs to discuss their day's work, the possibility of new mining techniques or where and how to dig new mining shafts. And Snow White listened to their every word and learned more day for day.

Every few months, four of the miners would leave for the capital where their wives lived. The wives' job was to distribute the goods from the mine. They lived together in a big house. Every time the dwarves went there, little Snow White would beg to come along, and after living with the dwarves for almost a year, she got to go. The wives took a completely different approach to Snow White's situation. Yes, hiding her away in the woods was an overall good idea, but pretending she did not exist and try to keep her hidden at all cost would only make anyone who saw her that much more suspicious, than they would otherwise have been. So they made a deal. Snow White stayed in the woods most of the time, but in the market weeks, she would come to town where the wives discreetly could show her off as the family's adopted daughter, Alba. By keeping the story of how she was found vague, they made sure that people would jump to their own and very erroneous conclusions.

When she was with the wives, Snow White was introduced to a bunch of new things, such as falcon hunting and haggling, but also the higher forms of entertainment one could find in high society. She went to balls, to the opera, and became a frequent visitor of both the local museum of art and the city's many cabarets. The wives also added to Snow White's curriculum. Rather than just learning about how to manage a household and how to run a mine, Snow White was also learning math, science, business and history. Every day while her fathers were away, she would study the books that her mothers sent home with her every month.

As years passed, and Alba grew up into a beautiful and confident young woman, her mothers started to loosen their grip on her a bit. She walked more freely among her peers. She was still being chaperoned of course, but nobody expected her to stand right next to one her mothers at all times. The dwarves' wives were influential merchants and had many friends, so they were often invited to parties and outings. These outings were not only opportunities to have fun, but also to meet with partners, make trade deals and form new alliances. Alba watched, lived and learned. But she did also find time to have fun. It was such a night at a private party that it happened. Alba had danced a few dances with a friend, when a young man walked up to them and asked if he could cut in. It took a few seconds before Snow White recognized the youth, then she broke into a big smile and threw herself in his arms. "Ferdinand!"

It really was him, her childhood-fiancé and old friend. He gently embraced her. "I've missed you too, Snow," he sighed.

They spent the rest of the evening together, reminiscing of old days and catching up on what had happened to each other in the passing years. But it was more than just a renewal of their friendship. In the following months, it became clear to everyone that a budding romance was flourishing between the prince and the merchants' daughter. It was joyous news and excellent gossip, and as all gossip, it spread fast and wide. So wide in fact, that a queen, a once very beautiful queen, of a neighboring country heard about the romance. Normally this would have been of little concern to her, withdrawn as she had become from high society. Seven years and the birth of three living sons had taken its toll on her beauty, and she had lost most of her admirers along with her husband's good graces. But when she heard of the pretty merchant's daughter with hair as black as ivory, skin as white as snow and lips as red as blood, she felt an old hatred burning in her veins. She had recognized her rival. A rival who was not only back but also stronger than ever.

Snow White was gorgeous. Snow White was going to marry a prince. Snow White would be the most beautiful queen the land had ever known. It was intolerable. _It was an outrage_. _**It had to be stopped**_. And this time, she would do it herself.

At first, everything seemed to go smoothly. It was easy to find an excuse for leaving court and going to the old summer castle, which was near the city where Alba's mothers lived. Not only that, but she was so incredibly lucky that they were visiting some of their friends, which gave her the perfect idea. She disguised herself as a maid and sneaked into Snow White's chambers early one morning. When someone from the house saw her, they assumed she worked for one of the guests and the guests' servants had not been on the grounds long enough to know who was who, and so simply assumed her to work for someone else. It was going perfectly. But from there everything seemed to go wrong.

The girl was supposed to be fast asleep, but life with the miners had taught Alba to rise with the sun, and so she sat by the mirror combing her long black hair. The queen did not hesitate. She grabbed some of the strings Alba used to lace her corset and strode towards her unknowing victim. Only to be stopped by Alba's own maid who entered at just that moment.

"Oh, there you are," the maid said impatiently. "Well, don't just stand there. The young lady needs to be ready for her ride in ten minutes. Help her with her corset." Then she went to the closet, presumably to get a riding habit. The queen did not dare to make an obvious attack with a witness so close by, so she hurried and tied the corset as tight as she could, ignoring the girl's protests. Then she ran, almost knocking over the young maid who just entered to assist. She heard Snow White's maid call for some scissors and had to bite back a disappointed groan when she heard the housemaid exclaim, "She is waking up."

Her next attempt didn't go much better. She had brewed a poison, a potent and fast working one, which would cause a deathlike sleep upon skin contact. Then she dipped the teeth of an ornamental comb in it. She had gone to the market and pretended to be a saleswoman. It was not that hard to convince Alba to buy the comb, nor to let her place it in the young girl's hair. But when Alba fell unconscious to the ground, the comb slid out of her silky locks and the poison immediately stopped working. The damned girl was simply impossibly hard to kill. The queen was completely crestfallen by her results, but she refused to give up. The poison worked perfectly. She just had to make sure it would not fall out of contact with Snow White once she had administered it to the girl.

Meanwhile, the market week had ended and Alba went back to stay with her fathers. The girl didn't really suspect anything, but asked her fathers if she could not wear a corset for a while, as she had already fainted twice in the bygone week. The dwarves didn't have a problem with this, and advised that she stayed indoors and took it easy for a little while. So she did. Snow White soon forgot the unpleasant incidents and went on with her life. And as such, she didn't find it that strange when an old woman came by to sell apples. She bought a basketful, intending to make a pie for her hardworking fathers. She turned to go place the basket in the kitchen and heard the old woman say, "And this is for you, my dear. Such a pretty girl deserves a little treat." Snow White turned to see the saleswoman hold up an exceptionally delicious looking red apple. She gratefully took the gift and thanked the old woman many times before biting into the apple. But she hadn't even swallowed the first bite before the world started spinning around her. She reached out for the table, trying to steady herself, but she missed and fell helplessly to the floor. The world spun faster and faster around her, her body trembled and from somewhere faraway she heard a mocking voice: "Poor little Snow White. No happy coincidences will save you this time."

The queen left her stepdaughter unconscious on the kitchen floor, surrounded by the apples that had fallen out of the basket.

...

As night drew near, the dwarves returned home. They were in for quite the shock. Their daughter lay on the floor, her eyes still open and starring into unseen depths. They rushed to her, fearing the worst. They breathed a heavy sigh of relief when they found her alive. But they could not wake her. They tried everything they could think of, but no matter what, their child remained still and cold. At last, they carried her upstairs and laid her in her alcove. There they proceeded to care for her in the long weeks that followed. They sent a message to their wives that Alba had fallen ill, and would not join them in the upcoming market week.

As the weeks turned into months, Prince Ferdinand grew worried for his friend. It took him time to work up the nerve, but at last, he went to her mothers' house to ask to see her. At the merchants' house, he was informed that Alba had fallen ill and could see no one. One of the women remembered him however and how fond their daughter had been of him. She took pity on the young man and told him of her daughter's condition and whereabouts. The prince thought quickly about his options. His family employed one of the country's best physicians, but he was an old man and therefor rarely left the castle. But if he could get Snow there… The prince mounted his horse, bid the women goodbye and rode towards the forest.

He rode all day. Finally, he reached the house, just as six tired miners returned home. He hurried to them and though he was short of breath after the long ride, he told them his story. How he knew Snow White and how he had met her again and finally he proposed his help.

The dwarves decided to trust the prince and headed upstairs to get their daughter. They laid her on a stretcher and carried her down the stairs and out the door. But as the dwarf holding the back of the stretcher walked through the front door, he stumbled over the foothold. Snow White fell off the stretcher and to the ground, where she rolled over once before lying still. As the eight men rushed to her side, nobody noticed the small piece of apple, which had fallen from the girl's mouth. Now free of the poison, Snow White quickly woke up. She tried to rise to her feet but her body was weak and stiff after being immobilized for several weeks, so for a moment she just lay still. She stared at the door for a few seconds with an unreadable expression on her face. Then an expression of determination crossed her face for just a second. She managed to lift her head and push herself up a bit by using her arms. She looked rather helpless to the men who had surrounded her. She smiled almost apologetically and said, "I'm… I'm sorry. I must have fainted again." She sighed, ran her fingers through her hair, and mumbled, "That's it. I'm never wearing a corset again." The men around her broke into relieved laughter. Then Snow White's eyes fell on the prince. "And what are you doing here?" the young woman asked.

The prince blushed and had to cough a few times before he could answer. "Your mothers told me you were sick. So I came to see if I could help."

Snow White nodded. "Well, you're welcome to stay for dinner… Once we've made it," she said. Two dwarves helped her back onto the stretcher and carried her inside. The rest took the prince upstairs to relax a bit.

A week later, Prince Ferdinand announced his engagement to the merchants' daughter Alba and two years later, they were married. The wedding was held outdoors on a beautiful day in May, with all of the important merchant-, noble- and royal families present. Among these distinguished guests was a queen from a neighboring kingdom. She kept to herself and seemed content watching the events rather than participating. As she stood in a corner with a view of the dancefloor, she heard a soft voice say, "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?" She turned and saw the hostess, the young queen Alba, standing next to her. With a defeated look, she answered, "Surely you are, Majesty." For a while, the two queens stood side by side, each lost in their own thoughts. Then Alba recognized a merchant in the crowd and excused herself to go talk trade deals. Left behind stood the older queen. She stared out at the dancefloor, where an old king was dancing with his beautiful young mistress.


	3. Sleeping Beauty

Sleeping beauty

There are many stories that tell of children born of magic. None so well known though, as the one that tells of my princess, Talia, the sleeping beauty. Let's see, where to start? Oh yeah, the marriage of King Stefan and Princess Dorinda. I always found them an odd match. He was an arrogant and kind of moody, fair-skinned German king. She a sweet natured, but fiery, dark, Spanish beauty. Yet, they seemed to get along nicely. They simply clicked I think the expression is. Like chocolate and cream, they complemented each other. Therefore, their marriage was a very happy one. Anyhow, worry quickly came to cloud their days, as they should remain childless through the first five years of their marriage. And that's a big problem for royalty, let me tell you, you would not believe the trouble… But no matter. After five years, a magic being in frog-form jumped the queen in the bath, and she bore a daughter.

Yeah, that happens.

Anyway, it was a strong and healthy child, so the kingdom rejoiced. With a giant party, because that's what you do if you have the money to throw around. And boy, oh boy, did they throw it. The king declared a weeklong celebration in the entire kingdom. Prisoners were pardoned and rose bouquets were sent to the women of every household… and tobacco for the men, because why not. Every street corner was scrubbed clean and roses and ribbons hung from every window. And that was just outside the actual celebration. The king's next child didn't get this fine a welcome into the world. That may actually be these royals' biggest shame. If Prince Johann at least had gotten as much attention as his older sister, he might not have started out as far behind her or had the deep lack of self-esteem he ended up with… Luckily, his wife made up for a lot of it. The kingdom entered a regular golden age under their leadership. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Now where was I? Oh yes, the celebration.

It was a ginormous feast. The king invited everyone. There was the entire royal family, foreign royals, nobles both foreign and local, and a few important merchant families. Even the peasants got to celebrate. In the castle's outer court of course, wouldn't do to mix the classes too much after all. But even in the outer courts, the festivities were nothing to turn one's nose up at. Might actually have been the more fun ones. There was dancing and different competitions from pie eating to archery. I swear, I saw at least a hundred open beer caskets and spit roasts when I passed through. All of the fairies in the land had been invited, you see. We came to wish well upon the king's firstborn. But first there was a ton of ceremonial matters to get through. It was a much more sombre, not to say boring, kind of celebration.

Finally, it was our turn. We all went up to the crib to grant our gifts. Now I say all, but that is not entirely true. There were thirteen fairies in the kingdom. But the king had a shortage of gold plates, and rather than buying a new one, he left Our Elder out and just invited the twelve of us. Each of us had thought a lot about our gifts and so the princess received the following as cradle gifts: Virtue, wit, knowledge, beauty, grace, musicality, charm, humour, strength of character, artistry and skill of diplomacy. And then it was my turn. I was just about to step forward and deliver my gift… What was it I had planned on? Vitality? Fertility? Oh, never mind. It doesn't matter… It doesn't matter because I never got to give her that gift. Just as I lifted my foot, the doors burst open and Our Elder stomped in. I have never, before nor since, seen her that angry. Her eyes were ablaze and magic surged around her. She was terrifying in her wrath. She lifted a crooked finger and pointed it accusingly at us. "WHAT. HAVE. YOU. DONE!?"

One of the older ones among us stepped forward. "We have gifted the child. Nothing more."

This did not calm Our Elder at all. Her voice rang loudly in the hall when she answered, "GIFTED? YOU HAVE GIFTED _A MAGIC BORN!_? _**TWELVE TIMES?"**_ Nobody dared to correct her and so she went on. "IS THERE ANYTHING REAL LEFT ABOUT HER!? HOW IS SHE SUPPOSED TO GROW INTO HER HUMANITY LIKE THIS!?" When she received no answer, she continued talking in a low and controlled voiced. "It's an abomination, is what it is. A monster. And I will not allow such a_ thing_ to live. It will only bring grief." She walked decisively towards the crib, but was blocked by the queen, who had thrown herself to the ground in front of Our Elder.

"Please," the queen begged. Somehow she managed to retain her dignity as she lay there, clinging to the bottom of Our Elder's cape. "She is but a baby. How can you know what the future holds?" She looked up and stared Our Elder square in the eyes. "You cannot. You can't know that!"

Our elder ripped her cape free and continued her stride to the crib. When she reached it, she spoke.

"I'll leave the child to grow,

In sixteen years, the world will know.

If her mind is cruel and vain,

Have her gifts left her insane,

A spindle's needle be her bane."

Then she left in a puff of smoke.

There was quite a bit of commotion, but I barely noticed it. Something Our Elder had said intrigued me. So I looked in the crib, and was immediately disappointed. "An abomination? Really? I thought babies were supposed to be poopy, smelly and ugly." I suddenly realised that the entire hall had gone quiet and everyone was staring at me.

The older one who had spoken before suddenly realised that I had not gifted the child. She pushed me forward towards the king. He seemed delighted by this. "So there is no problem," he declared and waved his hand at me. "Lift the curse."

I stared at him for about a second. Could he really be this naïve? "No," I declared. "I cannot. It is not my curse." I continued, feeling that I owed some explanation. "Only Our Elder can take it back."

The king looked crestfallen. "Then my daughter will die, because of your incompetence." he stated. I ignored him and looked down into the crib, trying to see what Our Elder had seen. If I did not honour her intentions, she was powerful enough to ignore anything I did to her spell. I had to word it right.

If the gifts were the problem… But no. No, they were not. Not per say.

I knew how to form my counter curse.

"A most cruel fate was promised you.

But I will get a word in too.

If your gifts leave you out of reach,

Then sleep and dreams will lessons teach.

A gift means to dream, a lifetime each.

And with the passing of a century,

A kiss of love, our spell will breach."

Believing that to be satisfying enough for Our Elder, I conjured my own puff of smoke and left the hall.

I didn't get far however. Our Elder found out that I had messed with her spell pretty quickly. And apparently that made the princess _my responsibility. _Now let me just tell you, using magic to play the role of six different servants for sixteen years _sucks._ No wait, scratch that, that might actually be really fun. I mean I could do this big assassin plot in one role, stop myself in another… But I would need a quirky sidekick… I could also find love. I mean do it right. The whole big sappy romance plot, with meaningful glances, discreetly passed messages and secret meetings under the moonlight … I could make my own love triangle. _I might be on to something here. _But back then it sucked, big time. I had not chosen to be there and I had to spend all my time watching the world's most spoiled brat. I couldn't even play karma and make some of her antics backfire, because apparently, that would be cheating. Therefore, I had to hang around and watch as every single one of her gifts soured. Her wit and knowledge soon made her see everyone else as a bumbling idiot. And because of her "strong character," she never saw herself as wrong. You'd believe that her diplomatic skills would be a plus, but coupled with her "charming personality" and undeniable beauty it just made the world head over heels for her. She was never denied anything. If someone tried, she would throw an epic tantrum. She would yell and scream, threaten and curse until she got her way. And for most people, being threatened by the princess was just too dangerous. Therefore, they gave in. One way or another, if Talia wanted something, she got it. _She was infuriating to be around_. As for the rest of her gifts? Well, she took lessons alongside her younger brother, Johann. Being gifted with knowledge, musicality and artistry, she never had to work for anything. She, however, found it extremely humorous that he did. In fact, her gift of humour mostly translated into taking a cruel delight in other people's struggles… And her teachers just continued to adore her and held her as a shining example for their less fortunate student. No wonder Johann ended up as he did. To the day of his death, he could not speak without stuttering. Talia's demeaning attitude and sharp tongue left deep wounds on the poor boy's soul.

But even with all of that in the way, I still believe Talia could have turned out alright. If her parents had just listened to Our Elder's warning and seen through our gifts to the person behind them. Then they would have taught her better values, better judgement and everything would have been different. But then… But they didn't. As they saw it, Talia had been gifted with virtue, so she was virtuous. It wasn't her fault the world couldn't live up to her standards. Therefore, they bended to her will at every turn. Talia wanted the best clothes, so tailors were brought in to sew them for her. Talia wanted the best room for herself, so it was given to her. She did not like her maidservant. Therefore, the girl was thrown out. That was the end of that role… Oh well, at least that time it did not end with a hapless girl starving in the streets. However, to me, the worst time was when Talia decided she didn't like the attention that Johann received as crown prince. The king hid him away. As if he was something to be ashamed of. Poor boy. With a sister like that, he just didn't have a chance.

Yes, yes. I'm rambling. I'll get on with the story.

Talia was a nightmare, so I was relieved when her sixteenth birthday rolled around. Once that happened, the king and queen let go of any fear they might have held for the curse. They thought it had failed. They completely forgot that the curse had been cast almost two weeks after Talia's birth. When spinning wheels was brought back into the country, I saw that Our Elder's spell had to come true. And I was not the least bit sorry. Getting to that point, however, might have been the hardest part of my whole charade. First there was all the pomp and ceremony of celebrating Talia's birthday. No birthday party should take a week to celebrate. Ever.

Finally the day came. The king and queen had decided to please their daughter by taking her on a special holiday in a mansion close to the borders of two other countries. So that's where we were. Knowing that the time was drawing near, I kept my attention on Talia. Therefore, it wasn't hard to follow her, when she wandered off through the house one day. I stopped and listened by the door, as she went into an unused chamber. Through a creak in the door, I could see the scene that unfolded inside. An old woman sat by a spinning wheel at the other end of the room. Talia stood still and looked at her for a moment, then she asked, "What are you doing?"

The old woman didn't even look up when she answered, "I'm spinning yarn."

Talia's shoulders tensed, she never had taken kindly to being ignored. Her voice was, however, still sugar-sweet when she spoke again. "That looks fun, may I try?"

The old woman did not even consider it. "No."

Talia's voice took on a begging tone. "But it looks so fun and I bet I'll be really good at it." I could almost see the big dark puppy-eyes she used to melt the hearts in anyone who did not immediately fall for her charm. But it didn't work, the old woman seemed more annoyed than smitten with Talia.

"That might very well be the case," she said. "But I am very busy and simply do not have the time for you." Somehow, Talia's magical charm had no effect on the woman. Even people who had stood up to her before had never been unaffected by her gifts. Apparently, this was also becoming clear to the princess. Her voice was ice-cold when she demanded that the woman stepped aside for her. The woman finally looked up from her work. "With all due respect, You Highness, I do not have the time for this. Why don't you run along?"

That was more than Talia could bear. She went into hysterics, screaming and yelling. Nothing I had not seen before, but when she threatened to have the old woman put on the wheel, that was enough. That's when my charade ended. Time was up and if the curse couldn't stop that monster from inflicting such torture on this helpless old woman, I would. I threw away my disguise, strode into the room and froze in my tracks when I recognized Our Elder.

She stared, past the irate princess, right into my eyes. "Is this what you defied me for?" she demanded. "Is this worth saving?"

I could only bow my head in shame. "No," I whispered "But I didn't…" I couldn't even finish that sentence. How could I not have seen this coming? How could I have been so blindingly naive?

A triumphant gasp followed by a surprised yelp tore me from my self-pity. I looked up to see the princess fall to the floor. She had ripped the needle from Our Elders hand and subsequently cut her finger on it. The curse had been fulfilled. Our Elder stood up. With a flick of her hand she sent the sleeping princess flying over on a bed in the corner. She walked past me out of the room. I heard her say, "It's not over yet. You said, she would be taught. Now teach her." Then she left me and went to talk to the king.

I did. It was not that I didn't know what to do. I mean, I'd been preparing for it for at least a decade at that point… Yeah, we gave Talia many gifts. Subtlety was not one of them … Anyway, the gifts. For every gift, she would have to learn a lesson. So I got started on her first dream. Or rather, I made the ground rules for her dreams. She spun her dreams of a mixture of her memories and reactions to her lessons. Her first gift for example had been virtue. The ability to know and do right. But in order to control this gift, she had to learn empathy. That what was right for her might be completely wrong for someone else. She had to learn that within her own lifetime. If she reached her sixteenth year, and pricked her finger again, before she had learned her lesson, she would die. That was not even my rule. That was part of the counter spell. If she weren't taught lessons, then the counter spell would fall away and the original curse would fall back into place. So she had to learn or die. My rules pertained to how she was taught. It was a simple enough principle. If Talia went against the lesson her dream was trying to teach her, then she was met with adversity and had to struggle. But as she learned, she would prosper. After getting that in place, all I had to do was set a timeframe for the dreams. Now dreamtime and real time rarely coincide, so I decided that though every dream should be her full lifetime, sixteen years in dreamtime, they would only be seven years in real time.

The king vacated the area soon after learning of his daughter's fate. He declared that the whole nation was to grieve for her and forbid anyone from going near the mansion, that he saw as her grave. Our Elder and I helped with the latter by growing a thirty-meter tall and ten meters wide thorn hedge around the building. It made my work easier if I could focus on working with Talia without worrying that someone would interrupt me or steal her body away.

As I said before, empathy was her first lesson. But there were many more to learn.

The sharp tongue of her wit had to be tamed with subtlety.

Her great knowledge should be pared with insight and understanding.

As for her beauty? Well, as beautiful as she was herself, she had to learn to see the beauty in all around her.

Her grace had to be paired with patience for others and her musicality with a lust for teamwork.

Her charm had been one of the things to constantly land her victory in all interactions. Now she had to learn compassion and well-wishing for others.

She also had to learn to laugh with others rather than at them.

She had to strengthen her character with humility and acknowledgement of her own flaws.

Her artistry was a great gift, but she had to learn to share it with others and take pleasure in seeing _them _progress.

And finally she had to learn loyalty, because even the best diplomat is worthless if they stand by no one.

At the start of every lesson, she would hear the fairy who had given the corresponding gift whisper in her ear, "Little princess, I give you… virtue … wit…" and so on.

I watched her progress I her dreams. In the beginning, it was hard for her. My princess was so set in her ways and I admit I took a lot of pleasure in watching her struggles.

Hey, I'm a fairy. A bit of sadism is to be expected.

But as time passed, and more and more lessons were learned, it became easier for her, and to my own surprise I found myself rooting for her. In fact, when she took to her last lesson like a fish to water, my heart swelled with pride.

Now don't think I watched her all the time. Not only would that be incredibly creepy, but I would never have the patience to sit around and watch Princess Snoozypants for a hundred years. I checked in on her every so often, to see how she was progressing and initiate a new lesson. The rest of the time, I kept up a mental connection with her so I always had an overall idea of her mental state.

Meanwhile, I travelled a bit, had a few adventures of my own. I even found the Fountain of Youth. Though being a fairy, I really had very little use of such a wonder. So I threw a coin in and made a wish… I can't remember what I wished for. Probably cake.

However… We were talking about Talia. Having learned all of her lessons, you'd think she was ready to wake up. That she could just go on with her life. But that's not how it works. Only eleven lessons had been taught and only seventy-seven out of a hundred years had passed. There was still two dreams to go. First there was Our Elder's lesson for Talia. This one should be the hardest of all the dreams. For both of us.

Our Elder's lesson was hindsight.

As if it wasn't creepy enough to hear Our Elder's voice whisper, "Little princess, I give you death." My princess now had to watch herself live her life exactly as she had before. Only this time there was no counter spell to save her. She had to watch herself go against everything she had learned, against every principle that had come to define her. Finally, after helplessly watching for sixteen years, she had to watch herself die.

I stayed by her side the entire time. Sometimes I shared her dream, sometimes I did not. But I always felt her pain and I shed many bitter tears for my poor, poor princess. Never have I been as relieved as I were when the dream ended and I heard my own voice whisper in her mind, "Little princess. I give you life." My lesson was much easier to get through. It was the lesson of possibility. My princess got to see what her life could have been like, if she had learned her lessons from the start. It was just one of many possibilities of course, but still, it was a pleasure to see my princess grow up and utilize her gifts. To see her surrounded by true friends and to see the pride she took in teaching her younger brother. This was what we fairies had hoped to make her when we gave her our gifts. Strong, confident and gracious. And when her lesson ended and she pricked her finger, nothing happened. She simply went on with her dream life and grew up. I was happy to give her the remaining nine years of the century. I felt I owed her that much. To make some good memories with her family. So I gave her my own memories of their lives to work with and hoped for the best.

Then I left her.

I had some things to worry about you see, things that I had postponed dealing with. It had simply not been necessary, as long as Talia's fate was undecided. Talia was not human. She had never been fully human. She was sired by magic after all. If we'd left well enough alone, the magic would have faded and she would have grown up as a normal human. But we did not. With every gift, we had taken a bit more of her humanity. My gift was the last straw. In my attempt to save her life, I had tipped the scale. Talia was now far more magical than mundane. I would have to fix that. Therefore, I began my journey, far into the fairy woods, to find Our Elder. It wasn't hard to find her. It just took a while because one fairy cannot use magic on another's territory. Nor was it hard to convince her to help me annul our gifts. Just mine and her gifts. Annulling the others would have made this entire endeavour kinda pointless. I mean, sure, I had to do her a favour first. She wanted me to get her three golden hairs from the Devil. His grandmother hands those out to anyone who'll sit down and chat with her over tea. After that, we made our annulments and bottled the spell. Then I headed back. I arrived just in time for the hundred-year anniversary of my princess's naptime. So yeah, I'd spent nine years walking in and out of a forest. And Our Elder wonders why no one ever comes to visit.

But back to the story. Getting through the thorns was easy enough. As I walked into the chamber where Talia slept, I thought back on a conversation I had with her father almost sixty-eight years earlier. He had worried that nobody who loved his daughter would live long enough to break the curse. Back then I had seen it as a real possibility. But as I knelt next to the bed and gently took my princess' hand in mine, I knew he had been wrong. I may not have lusted for Talia at this point, but I most certainly did love her. I loved her enough to willingly dedicate almost a century of my life to her. So while I was no knight in shining armour, I was there to save the princess. I lifted her hand to my lips and pressed a gentle kiss against her knuckles. She opened her eyes and looked at me. It only took a moment for her to realise that the curse her parents had told her of in her childhood had run its course. She was alone in the world. She threw her arms around me and cried. She cried for all the lost possibilities, for the loss of her family and for the waste of her life. She cried until the midday sun that had shone brightly through the window when I arrived had hidden itself behind the top of the thorn hedge. Then she fell asleep again. I didn't care to move, nor could I. My princess still held on to me ever so tightly. So I sat with her all night. When she awoke, I left her alone to wash up and get dressed. It took almost an hour before she joined me. I was waiting by a window in the ballroom.

Her voice trembled when she asked, "Are there anyone left? Of my family?"

I shook my head and looked out the window. "Your brother's son rules this kingdom. One of his daughters married our western neighbour."

She nodded, but remained silent after this.

I have never been good with awkward subjects, and I honestly had no idea how I should tell her about the consequences of the circumstances around her birth and the gifts she had received shortly thereafter. So I just started rambling, about magic and the effects and rules of it, how all her gifts had impacted her humanity, mortality and ageing… And so on, and on, and on. At last, I held up the small bottle and told her that if she drank the content within, she would become human again.

But she didn't take it.

She gently closed her hand around mine and pushed it down. "I think we can agree that I always made a terrible human. I mean look at the amount of magic it took to make me a decent _person. _Which I happen to think is more important." Seeing that I was about to protest, she said. "You've shown me that I could have learnt to be that anyway. But I didn't." She let go of my hand and looked out the window. "So, if my nephew is king here and my niece is queen west of here. What about our other neighbours?" she asked.

I shrugged. "A group of ogres has taken over a piece of land south of here, not much to say about our other neighbours. The lands north of here are ruled by a man who can't find his pants. Big scandal," I added and laughed.

She nodded and turned from the window. "I want to see it all." She grabbed my hand. "Come, let's go."

We left the castle, hand in hand.

To her, the world was new, exciting and a bit scary. To me? Well, I'm a fairy. To me, the world is neither old nor new, just ever-changing. So there really is no end to the fun two immortals can have… Like when that crazy queen wanted Talia burned by the stake for fooling around with the king… Or when the ogre queen thought that we were lunch… That could have ended badly…

But… Those are completely different stories. And my princess is calling me to come to bed.

Tata.


	4. Bellflower(Rapunzel)

Bellflower

In a village, on the edge of both the forest and the ocean, lived a pair of newlyweds who very much wanted a child. That was lucky seeing as the wife was pregnant. But with childbearing comes a lot of problems. Morning sickness, headaches, tiredness, a constant need to pee… and cravings for weird food. The last one is what sat our story in motion. You see, in the house next to this loving couple's home, lived the local witch. Of course, no one called her that. Some called her a herbal expert, a wise woman or a midwife, but to most people she was simply Mother Gothel. Mother Gothel was very good at her job. She had a vast knowledge of the flora and could brew cures for just about any ailment, be it sadness or sickness.

Because of her skills, Gothel enjoyed a lot of respect in her community, but people were also a bit frightened by her. After all, she was a witch. Maybe that is why her neighbor did not come to her, when his wife developed a craving for rampion. Specifically, the woman wanted the rampion from the big patch in Gothel's garden. Instead of seeking out the witch, Gothel's neighbor sneaked into her garden at night and picked as many of the flowers as he could. Therefore, it didn't take long before Gothel figured out that someone was stealing from her and she decided to catch the thief. And she did, the very next night. She was enraged. The utter gall of this man, to sneak into her garden and steal her herbs. As she dragged him inside and started sorting through his loot, the man desperately tried to explain himself. He even went as far as to say that his wife would die without the rampion. Now, rampion was not something that Gothel would have refused the pregnant woman. It is not poisonous after all. In fact the only reason Gothel grew it, was to eat it. But they could have asked.

She sorted another plant out of the mix, and her anger returned. "Are you even aware what you have done?" She hissed and pushed a small handful of the herbs towards him. A small handful of flowers that had not been taken from the same flowerbed as the rest. Mother Gothel knew this because there was no way she would grow these plants together.

The man seemed to realize his mistake. "What is that?"

Mother Gothel snorted. "Wolf's bane." She answered. "Some call it woman's bane. It's poisonous. Deadly so."

The man, who still seemed terrified by his neighbor, eyed a chance to justify himself. "Then why do you have it?"

Gothel sent him an icy glare. "I brew rat poison." She huffed. "And poison for the whalers."

The man stayed silent after that and he did not protest when Gothel insisted on keeping an eye on his wife and unborn child. Every day for the rest of her neighbor's pregnancy, Gothel came over to check on her and she brought rampion. During these visits, the two women talked a lot and at some point, they came to an agreement. They agreed that the child, once it was born, should live with and study under Mother Gothel. That way, the child would not only get an education, which was hard for your average peasant to get, but also allow Gothel to keep an eye on him or her to make sure no ill effects had come from the unsorted herbs the mother had eaten. A few months later the child was born. It was a healthy little girl. As soon as the mother was done breastfeeding, Mother Gothel took the child in. She named her new daughter Bellflower, after the plants that had caused this happy situation for her. Not that the girl never saw her parents anymore. She ran back and forth between the houses as soon as she could walk, so much in fact that her three parents soon installed a door in the hedge that separated their gardens. It was a happy time for both families.

For her first six years, Bellflower was a happy little girl, who spread smiles wherever she went. She loved her Mama and Papa, her Mother Gothel, her little brother and the brother or sister her mama had in her tummy. For this little girl the world was wonderful and nothing could ruin it for her. But her parents saw it differently. Because as the years had passed, it had become clearer and clearer that Bellflower was no ordinary child. Weird things happened around her and nobody knew exactly why. No one knew exactly why things just turned out the way the little girl wanted them to. Once she wanted a red dress instead of the blue one her mother had sewn for her. Mother Gothel found a red dress in the closet the next day, but could find no trace of the blue dress. On another occasion, Bellflower was worried to take her younger brother home. They had played in a mud pool they had found. In fact, most of the village kids had played there. But it was Sunday and they were in their best clothes. Clothes that were now ruined. What would their parents say? But when they arrived home, the two children were astoundingly clean. It was only through local gossip that their parents found out that their kids had taken part in a mudslinging contest. A more normal scenario, however, was that Bellflower would bring wounded animals home and that they would then recover in record time. Like the porcupine that she brought home one day. The poor thing had broken its leg in three places and Mother Gothel told her charge that there was little she could do. But it had been late and they had had to go to bed, so Gothel did what she could and promised Bellflower to take another look at the critter once she had daylight again. The next morning, the porcupine was fine. But that those things happened, that was fine. The families could hide or explain them away. But when it happened in public… people started to talk.

Talk like that had a habit of turning venomous, and it did. Soon everybody in the small community whispered about the witch's child. Gothel saw the danger well before anybody took the first swing against Bellflower and prepared a way out. Deep in the forest, there was an old ruin. It was said that a princess once slept there for a hundred years. But the mansion had since fallen to pieces and only the bell tower by the chapel in the north wing was still inhabitable. It wasn't much, but for a family of two it was enough.

It was there deep in the woods that Gothel started teaching her protege how to manage the powers that neither of them could even begin to understand. Nevertheless, as the years passed, and Bellflower grew from girl to woman, she did gain a certain finesse. She practiced with her powers by trying to recreate the miracles that she sometimes created by accident. When that didn't work, she had Mother Gothel's vast knowledge to fall back on. Not only did Bellflower collect herbs in the forest around the tower, Gothel also brought in a number of plants from her garden as well as extracts of more exotic flora that she bought at the harbor, all of which she taught her student how to prepare and use. Soon they even had a garden behind the tower where Bellflower grew her own herbs. They also made a small stable, where she cared for a variety of wounded critters she found. These were some of the things that she busied herself with when her mentor was away. Because while wanting to stay with her daughter a lot more, Gothel often had to leave. She had duties after all and she had to, discreetly of course, search for information about powers like Bellflower's. As far as I've understood it involved a lot of veiled questions to her colleges.

Anyhow, it's about time for me to enter the story. Who am I? Eh, just the fourth son of a local woodsman. My name is Carrick Wolfe. I was tracking a deer one day, when I heard someone singing. I was curious, so I went to investigate. The voice led me to the old ruins, where I met her for the first time. That is I met her after I climbed to the window in her tower… and she had calmed down enough that we could talk and introduce ourselves. Yeah… our relationship started… awkwardly.

But once we got started we really just clicked. She was the funniest, most charming and knowledgeable woman I had ever met. Knowledgeable in theory at the very least. Most of what she knew about the outside world, she had learned from the many books Gothel had brought in for her. She could tell me of faraway lands and cultures, but would still be completely enthralled by my everyday stories from the village. As for what we had in common? Well, we both loved being outdoors and tracking animals in the woods. Though we used this skill for different purposes. I was a hunter, she a healer. We also both had a habit of taking in strays. I think we ended up owning a hundred dogs and cats over the years… But that's neither here nor there. In any case, this was a thing that really brought us together. Bellflower showed me her stable and we would often hang out there, and I'd help care for the animals. There were also days where we had to stay indoors. Then Bellflower brought out cherry wine, biscuits and a good book from her library. She would share stories and sometimes ask me to explain something. After all, I had what she called "a vast knowledge of the outside world." Or I'd help her brush her hair, which was very long. Once I came to visit, she was waiting by the window. She had her arms folded on the sill to rest her head in, and her long braid was hanging out the window and down the wall. Since then I would often tease her that if Mother Gothel ever left the door locked, she could just hang her hair out the window for me to use as a rope.

As the months passed I fell in love? Truly, madly, deeply. Soon I could not imagine my life without her and I didn't want to. I wanted to take this woman home as my wife.

Bellflower was not so easy to convince though. She wanted to go with me but worried how she could live in a world she had not been part of for so long, how she would control her powers that still flared up sometimes and what she would say to her mentor. That had me worried too. Like most people, I had a healthy dose of respect for our local witch. So I kept visiting her in secret, enjoying every moment. After all, we were young and in love, and that tower was kinda cozy.

Gothel found out eventually though. Great Scott was she angry... and scary.

I had been seeing Bellflower for almost two years and didn't think this visit was to be any different. I hummed a happy tune as I skipped over some rubble on my way to the tower, but found the door locked. Therefore, I climbed up the wall, went through the window… and stood face to face with Mother Gothel. "Your little bird has left its nest." She said "Do you have any idea of the harm you could have caused?" Then it was as if something broke in her and she lashed out at me. Verbally not physically. Scared as I was, I took a step backwards and tumbled out the window I had entered through. I landed headfirst in a thorn bush, which broke my fall but also left several scratches on my face and over my eyes, thus blinding me. Blind and scared as I were, I fled into the forest, ignoring Gothel calling out to me. I was convinced that this was the witch's curse. A punishment for daring to pursue her child.

I didn't give up though. We Wolfes know our way around the forest. So even without my eyes, I found my way home. I asked around among my relatives for help with finding my beloved. It was quite the search party. After all, there are many Wolfes in the woods. Not all of us are hunters. There are also woodcutters, rangers and anglers. We're all over the place. But it was still almost half a year before I found her. I was helping some of my cousins deliver some firewood to a local abbey, when I heard a familiar voice.

And there she was. I called out for her and Bellflower came rushing to my side. It was quite the tearful reunion. And in the midst of all these tears and all this happiness something amazing happened.

I opened my eyes and saw. She smiled down at me and looked a bit smug. "That's better, ain't it?"

This brought my cousins into the celebrations. There was a lot of hugging going around that bright January afternoon. Once we calmed down a bit, I finally got a good look at her and realized two things. First... She was pregnant. While it was a surprise, it was also a great joy that should only grow when she gave birth to our twins… But I'm getting ahead of myself… The second thing I realized was that her veil had fallen off, and I could see that she had cut most of her hair off. When I had last seen her, her hair had reached down to her knees. Now she didn't have a hair that reached further than to her neck. She smiled a bit awkwardly, when she realized what I was looking at. "It's supposed to imply modesty," she said. I smiled, now that her hair was short, it curled and I couldn't help but think it looked like a halo as the sun shone down through it. We stayed for a bit and I learned what had happened to my beloved in the passing months and how she ended up in that abbey. Well, while my appearance in their lives had forced Gothel to move faster than originally planned, it had all turned out surprisingly well. After much searching, Gothel had found a woman in the abbey who had powers similar to Bellflower's. Bellflower was currently living in the abbey and studying under this woman. That was one concern taken off our chests. Another followed soon when I sought out Gothel to formally ask for Bellflower's hand in marriage. To say that the old woman was wary of me is properly an understatement, but in time, she warmed up to me and accepted the match.

Finally I could bring Bellflower home as my wife.

There was still some concerns of course. While Bellflower's parents were overjoyed to have her living closer by, the rest of the local folks started off… careful. They did warm up to her eventually. After all, she was still a bundle of joy and spread smiles wherever she went. Nevertheless, for a time she got many a cold glare from all too many a wary villager.

That nobody ever spoke out against her can be attributed to three things. First, my family, who was just endlessly supportive of our choice. As I said there are many Wolfes in the woods and nobody wanted to be on the bad side of that many people. Secondly, Bellflower had trained under God in the abbey. And as our wedding took place there, it was just assumed that we had the order's blessing. And thirdly, well… like her guardian, Bellflower was a witch… so what could you do?


	5. King Lindorm

King Lindworm

As I've said there are many children born from magic and though my princess is the most well-known, there are still quite a few others. I remember a rather messy case of one. It was a long time ago and it was actually one of my brother's schemes, but our elder was very involved and she was nice enough to write the story down for me… Now let's see. It all started when King Olof and Queen Gyda woke up after their wedding night to find that it was written across their bed, that they'd never have any kids. In blood, no less... Ok, message taken. As they however very much wanted kids the queen tried all sorts of remedies, but nothing worked, and she grew more and more desperate and sad. She finally gave up and withdrew into herself, and of course that's when it happened.

One day, when the queen was taking a bath, a frog jumped in and told her it knew of a way for her to get pregnant. It's just a thing, they do. However, unlike the frog that prophesied Talia's coming, this one didn't just say: "You'll get pregnant," to make it happen. Instead it gave her a small task to perform. It told Queen Gyda to go down into her private garden the next morning at dawn. Once there she was to look under a specific bush, where she would find two small flowers, one white and one red, of which she was to eat one. If she ate the red flower she would get a boy and if she ate the white flower she'd have a girl. However, the frog warned her not to eat both. Then it hopped away.

Next morning the queen went down into the garden and found the flowers. At first, she had decided to eat the red one, but then decided against it, as a boy would have to join his father at war. So, she had decided that a girl would be preferable, as she could always keep her at home... Wait a minute, yeah, they're at war. This woman need to prioritize, her country is a war and she's worrying about babies... Not to mention that while I'm not an expert on neither humans nor children, I'm pretty certain that a woman can't have that many children with her husband if he is on the other side of the country directing an army. Still... At least she thought about it... That's something. Anyway, she ate the white flower, and then she immediately ate the red one too, rationalizing that it would not be a problem if she were to have twins. I... I don't even... Of all the **dumbest**... People, the world is full of tricksters and this is what we do. We give you what you want, just inserting one simple seemingly insignificant clause, that will make it all come crashing down upon you. Then we watch and laugh while you wallow in your own self-created misery. It's good fun. However, not every one of us has someone to make it clear when the consequences of our schemes will go too far, what is acceptable trickery and generally keep us in line. Well, there is Our Elder, but she can hardly be expected to keep an eye on all of us, all the time. I mean not only would that be monumentally creepy, it might actually be outside of her capabilities. Therefore, she mainly does damage control and teach us a lesson whenever necessary. But while most respect our elder, not everyone wants that. Some magic folks just want to make chaos, watch the world burn and what not. So, in order to avoid any major disasters, I'm going to level with you guys. If a magical being shows up in your bathtub… Or anywhere else, and offers you your wildest dreams, remember you aren't required to take their help or even hear them out. Be polite, but remember that they are taking your time, not the other way around. If you meet us in public or seek us out the rules are different, but... anyway, if you take the offer, you need to know exactly what you're getting into. Ask as many questions as you feel you'll need, and once you have your instructions, _**follow them.**_If you're told to do something, you must do it or the thing doesn't work. If you're told you can't do something: _**Do. Not. Do. It.**_

Everybody got that? Great.

Now where was I... Queen... Frog... Eat Flowers... Got it. So, the queen was now pregnant and nine months later she gave birth to twins. But one of the children was not... Normal. In fact, the first born was a lindworm. It slithered down under the bed and everyone forgot about it, as the queen gave birth to a healthy baby boy... See, right there. This is why I'll never understand you humans... Alright, for those who don't know: a lindworm is a giant, highly poisonous and venomous serpent. So, the queen basically just gave birth to a dragon and no one cared. At least Talia looked normal... This... Oh, well. I guess her royal birthyness will just have to come back when she's done something interesting. I got to give points for creativity though. A dragon, did not see that coming. I'd have gone with a hermaphrodite, you know, because it's a boy and a girl. It just makes sense.

But on with the story. The lindworm was kept out of the way for twenty years or so, being kept in a summer home out in the countryside. Some staff and teachers were assigned to take care of the dragon, some of them brought their kids so their charge could have playmates. The only big spectacle it made was when the twins were about six years old and the war ended, so King Olof came home. The lindworm came out along with its mother and brother to welcome the king home. It was a confusing event for all involved, but the king did acknowledge both of his children.

Other than that, nobody really thought about the royal firstborn. But when the king decided to send messengers to a neighboring kingdom, to inquire if the princess was up for marrying his son, they were stopped by a giant serpent blocking the road. When they tried to make it move, it demanded to speak to the king and queen. Once it reached them, the lindworm asked how they could just ignore that it was the older child and go find a bride for its younger brother first. Really? This is what sets you off? Lindworm, these people have always focused on your brother. They've generally ignored you all your life. It should be no surprise by now that they make shitty dragon-parents.

Anyway, the king promised to find his lindworm child a bride. And he did try... He sent messengers out to all his neighbors asking if one of them had a daughter to spare as a bride for his son. At first it seemed easy enough. A king he was on good terms with sent word back that he would be more than happy to send his oldest daughter. And so, the lindworm was engaged and a year went by with preparing for the wedding. The bride arrived with her entourage of servants, entertainers and guards. The royal wedding looked to be the event of the year, and though the bride did wonder about the haste of the proceedings and secrecy around her husband to be, she never really suspected anything to be wrong per se.

Not before her wedding day that is. In the beginning, all seemed pretty normal, a bit tacky maybe, but normal. Yes, I and some my siblings were invited along with Our Elder, and enjoyed the festivities quite well, thank you. But when the bride stood by the altar, fiddling with her long wedding dress, things started to seem off. With the dark colors chosen and the sullen faces of her parents in law and all their people, she seemed more like a virgin sacrifice than a bride. She looked nervous and was starting to shiver. Things only got worse when she saw her groom come down the aisle. The bride let out a panicked scream and bolted out the door, followed by her maid of honor, her twenty-three other bridesmaids, eight flower girls and her father, who all struggled to fit through. If you've ever seen thirty people trying to fit through one door, you'll know it's a hilarious sight. Meanwhile, panic broke out in the rest of the church as the guests fled, falling over each other trying to get out, either by following the bride, jumping out the windows or sneaking past the lindworm, who stood in the middle of the aisle looking rather confused and forlorn. Best part though was when Our Elder grabbed my brother by the ear and hurled him out the window above the desperate guests, before storming out herself. After about twenty minutes the screaming had subsided and the church was empty, aside from King Olof, Queen Gyda and the lindorm that is. And a few of us fay, but we kept hidden and quiet to enjoy the rest of the spectacle. The lindorm looked around, taking in the rather broken chapel and destroyed wedding décor, and then looked to its father and commented: "So, it seems you'll have to find me another bride."

And the king tried, he sent messengers to the farthest corners of the world to search for a bride. He got quite a bit more optimistic when Our Elder informed him that she had convinced my brother to tell how to change the spell. Took her about ten seconds to convince him. Gotta be a record. However, as there is technically nothing wrong with being a lindworm, he only had to do so if they managed to find a bride for the child. That gave the king even more of a reason to try and finally, from a country far, far away, he received a positive response. The preparations for a new wedding was immediately commenced and all seemed to be well on the way, when the father of the bride demanded a meeting between his daughter and her betrothed if he was to go on with the wedding plans. It went about as well as one can imagine, and the lindworm was once again brideless.

The lindorm disappeared after this and after a few weeks, people started to wonder if it had simply given up on marrying and gone away, weeks turned to months and no one saw it anywhere. Until one day when it suddenly turned up again and asked. "So, have you found a new bride for me?"

The king shook his head. "There is no way I can find another princess for you, as I already have the fathers of your two former brides threatening war upon this land for the insult I have paid their daughters."

The lindorm frowned and said "Why would I care for social status? Royal or common, I simply need you to find a bride for me." The lindorm slithered over to the window, spread its wings and flew away, leaving the king to think.

In the end the king decided to find a local common girl for the lindworm to marry. He thought them less likely to cause him trouble I suppose. He was however also certain no halfway sane person would just volunteer to be wed to a giant serpent. In the end, his choice fell upon a young woman who worked at the castle. Like her parents, she had been a servant there for most of her life and her family was among the ones who had raised the Lindworm. She wasn't exactly happy with her situation, but as she was under the king's orders to marry, there was very little she could do. She was also well aware that she had been chosen because the lindworm knew her, and they were childhood friends. So, she was easier to convince than most other maidens would have been. The perks she and her family received also sweetened the deal. Her family was elevated to noble status, if a minor one, and given a tract of land to rule over. She herself got fine clothes, good food and a complete reprieve from her duties as a servant. So, she tried to make the best of it. She enjoyed her newfound freedom and tried spend as much time with her fiancé as possible. So much that they soon seemed inseparable. They strolled in the garden together, had tea parties together, hunted in the woods together and had dinner together in the evenings. Meanwhile, up in the castle everyone was busy. Now that they, once again, had a bride, the preparations for a royal wedding could begin.

The preparations took about two years, which I guess is fairly standard. As the wedding day came nearer, the couple grew nervous about their future lives together. Interracial romances all have their own challenges after all and even with my brother's promise, they still didn't feel safe, mainly because my brother took his sweet time showing up I suppose.

Close to the village, which the bride's family hailed from, lived a man who descended from fay and so the bride decided to seek him out for advice. He lived a good day's journey from the castle, so it was early in the morning about two months before the wedding that the bride set out towards her hometown. Her journey led her through the woods that served as hunting grounds for the royals and their court. It was early summer, the trees were green, anemones covered the understory like a white blanket and birds filled the air with their song. It was all very nice, all in all, and the young woman would often stop to smell a flower or take in a sight. Therefore, the journey took her much longer than it would otherwise have and night had fallen when the village finally came into view. But before she could reach the edge of the forest a voice called out to her: "What's the matter, Dear?" The girl turned and saw an old woman with a basket full of mushrooms. The woman looked her over, and said: "It's a beautiful night and you are on your way to be married, to a prince no less. You should be smiling."

The girl shook her head sadly, "But do you not know? My husband to be is a lindworm, I'll be torn apart on my wedding night" … … … They were gonna do that? They were going to go through with the wedding night...? With a lindworm...? Even without having my brother's advice? People, playing with dragons can be good fun. But they play rough. As in really rough. As in you'll want at least some armor on you, time to prepare and intensive aftercare when you're done rough. And that's if you're a fay. They were going to shove some hapless girl into a small enclosed room with one, without as much as a: "Hey, heads up, this is gonna hurt." So, with the fear of repeating myself: Shitty dragon-parents… Yeah. Luckily the older woman had a solution. "Fear not," she said. "When you come to the castle, go through the ceremony as planned and when the time comes for you and your husband to retire, you have to request a few things. You must ask for ten nightgowns to wear and remember it is important that you wear them to bed. You must also request a bucket of lye, a bucket of whole milk and a flogger made from twigs, all to be brought to the bridal chambers. Once there, when your husband will ask you to remove your clothes, you must ask that he remove a skin in return. For every set of skin, he removes, you must take of a nightgown. He only has nine skins you see. When he removes the last skin, there will only be a piece of meat left of him. You must now soak the flogger in the lye and then beat the meat with them till they are worn away by the work. Then bathe the leftover meat in the whole milk, wrap it in the nine shifts and go to bed cradling the bundle in your arms as you sleep. When you wake in the morning I am sure that you will be surprised and pleased."

Again, I gotta give my brother some serious points for creativity on this spell-thing. I mean, it's utterly cruel, but still… creative. What is up with the disguises though? It seems to be the disguises preferred by most of my siblings: old people and animals. Don't get me wrong, old people I get, they are part of society and thus expected to pop up from time to time, but the critters? Who runs into a talking frog or raccoon and goes: "Yup, seems legit." Well I guess I'll just be a platypus next time I'm interacting with humans… Anyway, so, the old woman said her farewells and sent the bride on her way with a couple of mushrooms to munch on.

Even with this advice, the bride… you know what, I'll call her Tyra. I seem to recall that to be her name, or was that the other noblewoman with a lindworm? No, I'm pretty sure that was Tora. This happens way more often than one would think… Vikings. Anyhow, I'll call her Tyra and the Lindorm can be Draca, because dragon. That works. Even with the advice Tyra continued her journey, and after spending the night with some relatives, reached the home of the fayblooded man. He couldn't really help her though, but told her to take the advice she had been given, or seek out our elder for an alternative point of view. I suppose they could also just go the chaste route with their marriage, but you all know how kids are. They weren't much different back then, so that would properly be the last solution they'd go with. But I digress, now that she had gotten her advice the bride went home.

At home, she discussed her findings with her fiancé, and though they wanted to be together, they still weren't much for the solution. Neither wanted to put their lover through such torture, and neither was much for not knowing the outcome of it all. So, they decided to ask our Elder. This time the lindworm headed out. It was faster as Draca could fly.

Once the lindworm came to Our Elder's territory, it was a quick flight to her home. Odd thing about fairies, in our own territories, things only takes as long as we want them to. Draca dived down to the door, knocked politely and was let in by Our Elder. Draca told of their troubles and I can't say Our Elder was happy with what she heard. She however still agreed to help them as well as she could. You see, while our Elder is the most powerful among us, she can't just cancel a spell already cast. She can however alter them a lot if she sees fit to do so. She told Draca that the ritual that my brother had given was meant to permanently change the lindworm's body into a human form. Our Elder, however, did not see this change as just, so she gave them another ritual that resembled the first enough to still work, but would give a quite different outcome. They would need the same items as before, but our elder added an extra flogger and said that rather than shedding skins on the wedding night, Draca was to use nine already shed skins. Then she sent the lindworm on the way.

Once home, Draca sought out Tyra and told her of the new plan, which Tyra readily agreed was better than the first. Now they felt they were prepared for their wedding day and everyone rushed to prepare for the event. Once the day arrived, the bride and groom were quickly led to separate rooms to be prepared for the wedding, which would take place the following day. The proceedings were swift and before the sun could set the next day, Tyra was married to the lindworm.

Once the time to retire came, Draca and Tyra made sure to ask for the things our Elder had said they'd need and Draca went off to get the old skins, while Tyra went off to change clothes. Her handmaidens were more than happy to help her. Therefor she got into the many nightgowns with relative ease and was soon ready to meet up with the lindworm in the bedroom. Even if she looked like a ball. Once they were both in the room and the door was closed, they started working through the ritual. First, they put the floggers in lye to soak. Then the lindworm asked the bride: "Will you not take off your dress, My lady?" and the young woman answered: "Only if you remove a skin, my love." Draca took one of the shed skins and threw it on the ground, and Tyra took off a nightgown and threw it next to the skin. This scenario repeated itself until the lindworm had no more loose skins and Tyra was down to her last nightgown. Then they collected the skins and dresses in neat piles and started beating them with the floggers. Draca beat the gowns, while Tyra worked on the skins. They worked through the night and it was only as the first light of dawn crept in through the windows, that the floggers were worn down and they could wrap the piles up, soak them in whole milk and go to bed. Tyra was at this point so tired that she was shaking all over and fell asleep almost immediately. Draca lay awake for a little longer, the smell of the lye and the wetness from the soaked bundles made it hard to sleep. Finally, the lindworm managed to drift off too.

Take notes Queeny, this is how you follow instructions. No. I will not let it go. I guess I must wrap this up though…

Morning came and went. When the two newlyweds awoke, they didn't notice any real change in the room, besides that their bed was no longer soaked in milk that is. It was only when Draca decided to get out of bed that they realized the bundles had changed, and were now whole pieces of cloth. Tyra got out of bed too and they flung their cloths around their shoulders like capes, and marveled at their new forms. Tyra was now a lindworm, while Draca had become a human maiden, because white flower equals girl. They changed back and forth a few more times, before going back to bed. Around noon someone decided to check on the newlyweds, and were very relieved when they found the two young maidens sleeping in each other's arms.

Anyway, as for Draca and Tyra, they kept their shapechanging abilities for the rest of their lives. And though they favored different forms, they agreed that giving up their true forms would not have been a solution for either of them. When Draca's brother took the throne, he made his sister the leader of his army. I've heard quite a bit about that, she was a great tactician and every bit as well educated as her brother. Besides, with her wife always at her side it meant that the army were led by two princesses, who were also dragons. It was quite the effective scare tactic. Besides that? Well, I guess they just lived happy lives.

If you're wondering about the fate of my brother, well, he might have gotten away with the whole thing. You know the message in blood, the lindworm child, the possibility of a shredded bride and the utterly cruel solution he cooked up. Yeah… Our Elder may still have let him off easy. If he had not complained about her messing with his prank when she summoned him to talk about it. I was barely considered more than a child when the whole mess with Talia went down and this was way before that. So back then I was… Even younger. And I still knew that mouthing off to our Elder when she was already mad is a bad idea.

She turned him into a newt. He hasn't gotten better yet.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm out of story to tell, and my princess asked me to pick up dinner.

Tata.


End file.
